|

MORE!

(BaseballStL) -- Does trading for Cleveland Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera make sense for the Cardinals?

The idea was first made public by Joe Strauss, of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and it has since gained traction among the media that it could happen. The Cardinals have a weakness at the middle infield positions and the sharp-defending Cabrera might be a viable option.

Cabrera, who has two years left on his contract, would not be considered a ‘rental’ player for next season which would require the Cardinals to trade away decent prospects in turn for the 28-year-old.

It isn’t just his ‘web gem’ defense that makes Cabrera attractive to the Cardinals, but he has also emerged as one of the better hitting shortstops in the league the past two seasons.

Cabrera has hit 41 home runs over the past two seasons and posted a .270 batting average last season. Those are numbers that would look great in the Cardinals lineup.

So what would it cost the Cardinals? Well, it would be prospects or players on the up-and-up that would leave the Cardinals in the trade.

A player like Matt Carpenter could be attractive to trade considering there is no room for him to start at the moment which is why he will be trying out at second base this offseason.

There is also an abundance in starting pitchers so Shelby Miller, Joe Kelly or Trevor Rosenthal could be on the move in a possible trade.

In the perfect world, Rafael Furcal would return healthy next season and bat .300 and play 140 games at shortstop, but injuries have plagued him in recent years and it has become harder to count on him as a reliable man at the position.

It will now be a wait-and-see approach for fans as the offseason starts getting in full swing. There are also other options such as Stephen Drew or trading for Elvis Andrus.